The natural world, life, and dogs.
Recently, I’ve experienced an intriguing confluence of coincidences. They all involve my father. It started a week ago. *** First, my friend Brian—we grew up next door to each other—emailed to say he’d found some slides while going through his recently-deceased father’s belongings. Some were of my father and his beloved P-12 (a restored 1926… Continue reading Hot Chocolate
It has been a long, cold, snowy winter in Vermont. Still is, in fact, even though the calendar says March 31st. I hoped winter would be a good time to write my book. It has been, in some ways. But I learned something about myself: I do most of my writing in the afternoon and… Continue reading More Book Progress
It's been a minute since I last posted (November 25, 2022). Happy New Year! Some of you have been kind enough to check in, see how I am and how my book writing is going. Thank you. The boys and I are doing well. Finn turned 15, Conall reached eight, and I ignored my 66th… Continue reading Book Progress
In the Northern Hemisphere, March 20th was the spring equinox, the first day of spring. It's also referred to as the vernal equinox, vernal meaning fresh, new. It may have been the first day of spring on the calendar. But not so much where I live, in Vermont. It's still snowing every few days, although… Continue reading Spring Equinox
I'm learning how seasons transition in my new home in Vermont. The past couple of weeks, every time my dogs and I ventured outside, I heard new bird song. Nothing says spring more vociferously than the happy songs of migrating birds! Over the deepest part of winter, I was lucky if I heard a crow's… Continue reading A Whiff of Spring
Let me tell you the story of snow in my piece of Vermont, mostly through photos with brief descriptions. January was frigid. Trust me, it was cold. Temperatures dipping close to -30F a couple of nights, well below zero most nights, and some days not making it above zero. Add wind gusts of 15-30 mph… Continue reading A Snow Story
Finn barks when asking to come inside. Conall carefully clicks a toenail on the glass. That fundamental characteristic of Alaskan Malamutes – their quietness – is why I love them. They are sensitive to noise. They're keen listeners, hearing and interpreting the most subtle sounds. I’ve learned to listen through them, paying attention when they… Continue reading Do Nothing but Listen
I've been writing. A lot. I'm working on The Wolf Book, but also... ...a Kindle Vella project. A series of stories. More on that in a future post. For now, I'll let my local landscape - and my dogs - provide the content for this post, illustrating how quickly the scenery changes in this "shoulder… Continue reading Cold Landscapes
Among the far-too-many-to-list joys of running through the forest with my dogs off leash is watching them follow their natural curiosity, navigate obstacles, and solve problems. The joke among those of us who choose to live with Alaskan Malamutes is that when we ask them to do something, they look at us, thinking, Maybe. What's… Continue reading Dogged Determination
More foolishness fills our days following the previous post about spring, or more precisely, the "fool's spring" that tempts people living in the mountains into believing that winter is over. Fool's spring is a tease. But a delightful tease. If the past few days are representative of "fool's spring" in the mountains of Idaho, then… Continue reading A Fool in Love (with Nature)
Wild Sensibility 